hold of that strength, their powers to perform their functions, be they
of a superior order (such as the imparting) of initiation of an inferior,
(such as) remedying (the effects) of a scorpion’s venom, transcend all
limitations.^73From the standpoint that liberation is healing in the ultimate sense, the
following discussion uses T ̄antric foundations to illustrate inquiry into a
specific theme—sacred music—showing how music functions as a reli-
gious therapeutic. Comparative applications emphasize the healing
power of sacred music in a variety of Asian and American Indian tradi-
tions. Three main themes are addressed:
- Sound as a focus for meditation and a stimulus to the expansion of
liberative knowledge and consequent well-being. - The healing and liberative efficacy of breath-control in song, chant,
and the playing of wind instruments. - The function of music for experiential identification of Self and the
sacred.
Harold Coward writes that in all world religions, the oral experience of
scripture is as important, or more important, than the written:
The dominance of the written text for contemporary Westerners is
partly a result of the impact of modern, print-dominated culture on reli-
gious experience. But it is quite out of line with the traditional experi-
ence of scripture as found in the world religions and in Native American
religious experience. In each tradition the scripture began orally and to
varying degrees has remained a basically oral phenomenon.^74Not only spoken and heard scripture, but other forms of language are im-
portant in religious life: performative speech, chant, and song can all be
used in a sacred manner. By sacredin this context I mean that language
and music are ways of experiencing relatedness with what is holy. Both
classical Yoga and Tantra incorporate the power of mantra as a focal
point for meditation, and a stimulus to the realization of one’s true nature
and well-being. V ̄acaspati’s commentary on the Yoga-sutra ̄ says that repe-
tition and understanding of Omis “the means of feeling the presence of
the Lord everywhere, in all circumstances and phenomena” [TV 1:28].
Sound is so important in T ̄antric practice that Tantra is also called
Mantra- ́sastra. Tantra articulates the theme of ritual identification of
(forces of) Self with (forces of) cosmos. One of the most palpable ways to
experience this identification is in the production and perception of sacred
one line long
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